Who's Attending Games This Year?

[HuckFinn]

Thanks for the great insight Huck & Seth!! It would be great to be able to get to all those venues. Where would you put Jack Trice on those lists? I'm sure parking is pretty good.

Also, we've mostly all been to Kinnick and love most things about it, but what would be some wish lists for improvements to the stadium and surrounding area?

It was a bucket list item when I retired. Highly recommend!

 

[Hay Man]

It was a bucket list item when I retired. Highly recommend!

If and when I get to retire, that would make for some fun trips. Should be able to hit them all within 5 to 10 seasons....depending on scheduling and more conference expansion.

 

[Fryowa]

I had been to every BT stadium until the west coast invaded the conference. My take: Rutgers, meh. Penn St., almost impossible to get too. It looks like an erector set. Inside is inside. It’s big but really no louder than Kinnick. Overrated. Maryland, yawn.Ohio State, very impressive. Fans are into the game big time. Bus ride to game is easy to use. Dot on the “I’ is a stunning band show. (I am not a big band guy.) Nebraska, easy to access. Park at a high school, free bus ride to the game and back. The stadium needs to be torn down and re-built. Seats are awful, end zones, ok. Illinois and Indiana are decent, but small crowds. Good views. Indiana campus area is lovely! I am weird. I like Northwestern. Close to the action. Small and not excited fans. But big Iowa attendance. Minnesota, really nice venue. Good views, park at State Fair site and bus in with a reserved route. Fast. Modern amenities. Good crowds. “We hate Iowa!” Loud and long. Michigan State, needs to get a high speed elevator. Take your binoculars and plan on an hour to get to visitor seats via endless ramps. Impressive campus. Big House, nice but over rated stadium. Huge, but not really loud by comparison. Camp Randall, a good friend has 4 seats I get for free. 40 yard line, row 30! I gave them up. Seating is so crowded and uncomfortable that you will be miserable. Fans around me were, as expected, Badgers. And they were outrageously rude. Like, you could not cheer for the Hawks without being verbally abused and a couple of times, physically threatened. No tailgating, no parking, no good stadium access, hours in hours out.

It's funny how everyone's different as far as what they like. I thought Penn State was great...fans were very friendly and in and out was easy. My best friend lived in Gettysburg for about 6 years so we made the drive there a couple times. I went to a whiteout night game which I think every college football fan should make a bucket list item.

I usually judge my experience by the hometown fans first and the rest of the criteria after that.

Everything about nebraska sucks. Stadium, fans especially, and just a very, very overrated experience overall. The sellout streak is total bullshit. The reason it's easy to get to is because the state of nebraska sans Omaha could just as well be the surface of Mars. I love Omaha though. More Creighton fans than Husker fans there which is fine by my. I'm a Creighton fan.

Minnesota fans suck so it wasn't the greatest in my opinion. Wish they still had the Metrodome honestly, I have a soft spot in my heart for that place as a Vikings fan and I got to play baseball there once in high school.

Michigan, very overrated. Feels like you're sitting a mile and a half from the field because of the low slope. Penn State is proof that you can have a 100k capacity and still have great views.

Rutgers like you mentioned is pretty lame. There aren't very many college football fans on the east coast like there are in the Midwest and it shows. I've been to some D1AA games with bigger crowds and better atmospheres. I only went to that place because the same friend I mentioned before lived out there and we wanted to check that one off the list for a Hawks game.

Maryland...same deal as Rutgers, only went there because it was cheap and easy and I was on vacation there anyway. Blah stadium, blah crowd.

Wisconsin sucks. Worst visitor experience I've ever had but I went 20 years ago. I'm guessing it's still the same. Jump Around was impressive, but not as impressive as Iowa playing Jump Around in Kinnick after beating Wisconsin at home a few years ago. That game was cold as hell but trolling their fans and players made me feel warm.

Northwestern was great at Ryan. It was pretty much a Hawkeye home game. None of their fans really care about football and it was quiet enough that you could hear coaches and players yelling on the field which was weird. Don't usually get to hear that stuff. Their new stadium I'm guessing will be loud and rowdy for a while, but the truth of the matter is the novelty will wear off quick and they'll be back to where they were before. I don't really expect a bunch of current and future writers, lawyers, and politicians to get very excited about football.

Illinois was kinda cool because it still feels like 1985. It's in a shithole part of a shithole town so I guess there's something poetic about that. I have no hate for Illinois at all and still think Lovie Smith got a raw deal. I root for Brett Bielema anytime they aren't playing the Hawks.

I still need to get to Oregon, Washington, USC, Michigan State, Indiana, Purdue, and Ohio State. At one time my goal was to hit them all but I don't know if I'll ever do it. The logistics of college football these days are a lot heavier than just hopping in the car for a quick weekend trip now.

 

[Fryowa]

If and when I get to retire, that would make for some fun trips. Should be able to hit them all within 5 to 10 seasons....depending on scheduling and more conference expansion.

When you hit Penn State make sure it's a night game white out and don't go to watch the Hawks. PSU at night isn't a high-percentage thing and it'd be best to get the experience when you don't have a dog in the fight.

When I did it it was fun, but the Hawks got stomped which soured it a little. That was in the Beathard/Jewell/Kittle/King/Wadley era when we had like 20 future NF'Lers on the roster.

 

[Fryowa]

The DCT model boasts of an automatic transmission. Weird. I'm so used to the one-down, five up trans. To each their own.

95% of the fun of a motorcycle for me is jamming gears.

We're 22 years apart in age, but I'm guessing you also were a little kid at one point sitting in your room doing the air guitar version of riding a motorcycle and making the noise of running it up through the gears

 

[HuckFinn]

It's funny how everyone's different as far as what they like. I thought Penn State was great...fans were very friendly and in and out was easy. My best friend lived in Gettysburg for about 6 years so we made the drive there a couple times. I went to a whiteout night game which I think every college football fan should make a bucket list item.

I usually judge my experience by the hometown fans first and the rest of the criteria after that.

Everything about nebraska sucks. Stadium, fans especially, and just a very, very overrated experience overall. The sellout streak is total bullshit. The reason it's easy to get to is because the state of nebraska sans Omaha could just as well be the surface of Mars. I love Omaha though. More Creighton fans than Husker fans there which is fine by my. I'm a Creighton fan.

Minnesota fans suck so it wasn't the greatest in my opinion. Wish they still had the Metrodome honestly, I have a soft spot in my heart for that place as a Vikings fan and I got to play baseball there once in high school.

Michigan, very overrated. Feels like you're sitting a mile and a half from the field because of the low slope. Penn State is proof that you can have a 100k capacity and still have great views.

Rutgers like you mentioned is pretty lame. There aren't very many college football fans on the east coast like there are in the Midwest and it shows. I've been to some D1AA games with bigger crowds and better atmospheres. I only went to that place because the same friend I mentioned before lived out there and we wanted to check that one off the list for a Hawks game.

Maryland...same deal as Rutgers, only went there because it was cheap and easy and I was on vacation there anyway. Blah stadium, blah crowd.

Wisconsin sucks. Worst visitor experience I've ever had but I went 20 years ago. I'm guessing it's still the same. Jump Around was impressive, but not as impressive as Iowa playing Jump Around in Kinnick after beating Wisconsin at home a few years ago. That game was cold as hell but trolling their fans and players made me feel warm.

Northwestern was great at Ryan. It was pretty much a Hawkeye home game. None of their fans really care about football and it was quiet enough that you could hear coaches and players yelling on the field which was weird. Don't usually get to hear that stuff. Their new stadium I'm guessing will be loud and rowdy for a while, but the truth of the matter is the novelty will wear off quick and they'll be back to where they were before. I don't really expect a bunch of current and future writers, lawyers, and politicians to get very excited about football.

Illinois was kinda cool because it still feels like 1985. It's in a shithole part of a shithole town so I guess there's something poetic about that. I have no hate for Illinois at all and still think Lovie Smith got a raw deal. I root for Brett Bielema anytime they aren't playing the Hawks.

I still need to get to Oregon, Washington, USC, Michigan State, Indiana, Purdue, and Ohio State. At one time my goal was to hit them all but I don't know if I'll ever do it. The logistics of college football these days are a lot heavier than just hopping in the car for a quick weekend trip now.

When I went to Penn State, there was a booth near the entry set up by PSU welcoming Iowa fans. Very cool! Last year I went to the MN game and two women escorted me up the steps and to the proper entry for my seat. Yup. They were Gopher fans. Some years ago, I went to Trice and on my way up to my seat I lost my balance and fell. An ISU fan helped me up, then went to the first aid station back in the concourse and came back with a bandage for a cut on my knee. (Good post, Fry)

 

[Seth53]

Thanks for the great insight Huck & Seth!! It would be great to be able to get to all those venues. Where would you put Jack Trice on those lists? I'm sure parking is pretty good.

Also, we've mostly all been to Kinnick and love most things about it, but what would be some wish lists for improvements to the stadium and surrounding area?

I've been to Trice once...probably 30 years ago. Got liquids tossed at me, cussed at, a total shit show. Vowed to never go back...and I haven't.